This article provides a brief history of Hanes. This includes everything from the founding of the company, its evolution, impact, products, and some of the more common uses of these products today. Hanes is one of the best know household brands in the United States and has been in existence for over 100 years. The company long ago established themselves as one of the largest names in their industry.

In 1901 J. Wesley Hanes founded a company called Shamrock Mills, later changed the name to Hanes Hosiery. A year later Pleasant Hanes formed the company P. H. Hanes Knitting Co. Around the 1920’s both companies continued to progress from making undergarments to marketing t-shirts, sleepwear, fleece, and knitted shorts. Finally in 1965 the companies merged. This was believed to be the only merger between two companies with the same family name. Over the next 20 years Hanes continued to acquire and create new brands now under the parent company Hanes Brands Inc. Hanes is headquartered in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

A statement from the Hanes Brand Inc website confirms the brands’ reach: “In a recent survey, Hanesbrands can be found in eight out of 10 American households, and they are sold in hundreds of stores, plus Web and catalog. What’s more, our brands hold either the number-one or number-two U.S. market position by sales in most product categories in which we compete: First in T-shirts, fleece, socks, men’s underwear, sheer hosiery…”

Hanes does not mark the exterior of any of its apparel. This feature makes the brand great for embellishment such as embroidery or screen-printing. Most of the Hanes items found in the wholesale apparel industry work the best for screen printing, with sport shirts being good for both embroidery and screen printing.

Whether your outfitting a school group, kids camp, team, or simply like durable and comfortable apparel Hanes is a great choice. The Hanes brand carries a great reputation, history and durability that rival any of their competitors.